YouSaid · the spoken record

Zuzul

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14
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2004-11-23
most recent
2004-11-23
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1
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un-security-council

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  1. “I assure the Council that Croatia is ready to do its part, and that is why we are a credible candidate for European Union membership. In conclusion, let me reiterate that Croatia is fully aware of the importance of cooperation with the ICTY. We will continue to fulfil our obligations to the best of our ability.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  2. “We are pleased with the cooperation we have established with the Office of the Prosecutor, and we intend to intensify our regular communication with the authorities in The Hague. It has been stated on many occasions that the Tribunal must perform the role of enforcer of justice and protector of memory. We must ensure that future generations will be able to distinguish between victim and aggressor, but also between a nation's right to self defence and the individual crimes that may have been committed. As I stated earlier, those found guilty must be punished, regardless of their ethnic background. We also have an obligation to resolve the most difficult issues from our past. No nation can expect to build a better future if it is not capable of assuming responsibility for its own actions.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  3. “The referral of cases to competent national jurisdictions is one of the pillars of the completion strategy. The Croatian Ministry of Justice, Administration and Local Self-Government is conducting a programme, with the generous support of the Royal Dutch Government, that is designed to train legal experts in prosecuting war- crimes cases. Most recently, a working session was held on 29 and 30 October in cooperation with the ICTY Registry. Croatia now believes it is prepared to assume part of the Tribunal's work. We will continue to pursue a dialogue with the ICTY on that issue and cooperate in the field of training and technical assistance. In cases that have already been conducted, evidentiary material obtained by the ICTY has been used by Croatian national courts.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  4. “This process has been developing in close cooperation with the ICTY and is designed to prepare judiciary officials to prosecute war-crimes cases in a professional and unbiased manner. It is not widely known that since 1992 the Croatian judiciary has independently conducted nearly 1,500 war-crime cases - 1,491, to be exact. The case involving Croatian General Mirko Norac - who was sentenced to 12 years in prison - demonstrated that our courts are able to act both professionally and in an unbiased manner. Croatia fully supports the Tribunal's completion strategy as outlined in Security Council resolutions 1503 (2003) and 1534 (2004). We understand that that is a priority of the Security Council, and we are prepared to help expedite the work of the ICTY.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  5. “Allow me once again to express, on behalf of the Croatian Government, our commitment to cooperate fully with the ICTY authorities and with the international community in resolving this remaining issue. We are determined to fulfil our responsibilities as a mature democracy and will continue to insist that every citizen, without exception, comply with the country's laws. In the end, those who are found guilty must be punished, regardless of their ethnic background. Croatia is investing great efforts in preparing its national courts to assume cases involving war crimes. 1 am especially pleased that President Meron has recognized the efforts we have made in that regard.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  6. “On this point, I want to stress that my Government is in no way evading its own responsibility and that we have, in fact, repeatedly appealed to General Gotovina to appear before the court. Prime Minister Sanader recently stated once again that The Hague is the only location where one's guilt or innocence can be established. I want to re- emphasize the point that this is the only outstanding issue that exists between Croatia and the ICTY. Both President Meron and the Chief Prosecutor Del Ponte stated that Croatia's cooperation with the Tribunal is good and that the case of General Gotovina remains the only obstacle to our full cooperation with it.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  7. “Now I would like to address the current state of affairs in our cooperation with the ICTY. The facts clearly indicate that the Croatian Government has been fulfilling its commitment to comply with the requests of the Tribunal. In March of this year, two of Croatia's generals - Generals Markac and Cermak - surrendered to stand trial in The Hague. We also secured the handover of six indicted Bosnian Croats, who subsequently appeared before the Tribunal and are now waiting for their trials to begin. Most recently, the Bosnian Croat indictee Miroslav Bralo surrendered to the ICTY authorities. Croatia's position has been clear and unequivocal: all of our citizens are obliged to cooperate fully with the Tribunal. That includes General Gotovina, who remains at large.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  8. “The past must not be forgotten, and, more important, it must be properly assessed and understood. However, the fact remains that crimes were committed, and justice demands that the perpetrators be properly punished. My Government insists on the individualization of responsibility for the criminal acts that have been committed. We understand that the ICTY has a central role in prosecuting those crimes, and that is precisely why we strongly supported the establishment of the Tribunal from the very beginning. Croatia views cooperation generally as a matter of enforcing the rule of law and, more specifically, as a matter of implementing the relevant Security Council resolutions, the Statute of the ICTY and our own constitutional law, which mandates compliance with all Tribunal requests.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  9. “In order to fully understand Croatia's decision to take military action, one must take into account the situation in neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was, in fact, quickly deteriorating at the time. I will remind you that in the summer of 1995, the Serbs had occupied the United Nations-protected enclaves of Zepa and Srebrenica and were attacking Gorazde. Following the brutal massacre at Srebrenica, it was clear that decisive military action was the only way to counter the Serb onslaught, and the world simply could not allow Biha to fall into the hands of Ratko Mladic'. I am making these points in order to emphasize once again the legitimacy of Croatia's decisions at the time. I think it is of central importance that not only we today, but also future generations, have a clear understanding of the events I have briefly described.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  10. “Our people did not want a bloody conflict on Croatian territory, but were confronted with armed aggression, which had to be resisted. Our Government had the solemn duty to protect its citizens. Secondly, the Croatian Government invested great efforts in reaching a peaceful solution with the local Serb authorities. I know this firsthand, as I personally participated in negotiations during this period. In hindsight, I feel more than confident stating that Croatia exerted great restraint and demonstrated true patience in searching for a negotiated settlement. In the end, we had no choice but to liberate our occupied territory by military force. The former United States Ambassador to Croatia, Peter Galbraith, in his testimony during the Milosevic trial, openly blamed the local Serb authorities for rejecting a negotiated settlement.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  11. “Allow me to quote from the second and third preambular paragraphs of just one resolution, General Assembly resolution 49/43 of 9 December 1994, at the time when Croatia was still trying to find a peaceful and negotiated solution: "The General Assembly "Stressing the importance of efforts to restore peace in the entire territory of the Republic of Croatia as well as to preserve its territorial integrity within the internationally recognized borders, and emphasizing in this regard that the territories comprising the United Nations Protected Areas are integral parts of the territory of the Republic of Croatia, "Alarmed and concerned by the fact that the ongoing situation in the Serbian-controlled parts of Croatia is de facto allowing and promoting a state of occupation of parts of the sovereign Croatian territory, and thus seriously jeopardizing the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Croatia".”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  12. “The fact that this aggression was conducted within internationally recognized borders and on the territory of the Republic of Croatia has been reflected in a large number of General Assembly and Security Council resolutions, including Council resolutions 815 (1993), 871 (1993), 947 (1994), 981 (1995) and 1023 (1995).”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  13. “Croatia also believes that bringing the perpetrators of war crimes to justice is a precondition for confidence-building in the region. I think there is full agreement on these points. I do, however, wish to make a few brief remarks on the general political circumstances that surrounded the key events in the 1990s. These remarks are directly relevant to the outstanding issues that still exist today. First of all, I must reiterate that Croatia was attacked and subsequently partly occupied by the invading Yugoslav army, which was firmly under the control of Slobodan Milosevic.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source

  14. “I would like to thank the President of the Tribunal, as well as the Chief Prosecutor, for their very noble work and for their annual reports on the work that the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has accomplished in the past year. I would also like, on behalf of my Government, to express our satisfaction and to congratulate President Meron on his re-election. Allow me to now outline Croatia's position on this issue and explain what we have achieved thus far in our cooperation with the Tribunal. I wish to stress the point that Croatia was one of the leading proponents for establishing the ICTY. We have held from the very beginning that the prosecution of war crimes is fundamental to establishing lasting peace in our part of Europe.”

    2004-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5086 (2004) · source